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Ilika can cover a wide range of different market applications within the Energy sector to help customers advance their materials discovery programmes. The great breadth and large numbers of samples that can be synthesised and screened with respect to an identified capability means that Ilika can optimise materials in a much shorter timeframe. For the photovoltaic market, for example, we can screen materials for greater energy conversion efficiency. For fuel cell and battery applications, the candidate materials can be measured for catalytic activity. For hydrogen storage applications, different compositions can be characterised with respect to their hydrogen adsorption and desorption behaviours including their hydrogen storage capacity and cyclability.
Photovoltaics
increase energy conversion efficiency in your CIGS, amorphous Si, organic and more! |
Fuel Cell Catalysts
invent next generation Pt-lean / Pt-free catalysts |
Hydrogen Storage
metal hydrides - maximise storage capacity, adsorption / desorption rates, and other key performances |
Batteries
optimise your active materials for higher storage, higher |
Advancing Materials Discovery
 The Combinatorial technologies pioneered by Ilika are particularly suited to materials research based upon the use of metal alloys, chalcogenides, mixed and doped oxides, hydrides and nitride films or in the generation and characterisation of unique and novel Bio-polymers. Ilika has large-scale, state of the art work-flows incorporating patented technology which are capable of producing large sample arrays. These can be then be rapidly screened and characterised using a wide variety of High Throughput analytical techniques linked to bespoke Informatics software. In this way, vast libraries of materials can be generated, described and patented with customers able to utilise and exploit new and innovative materials in a significantly faster timeframe.
Physical Vapour Deposition
Ilika Technologies has successfully pioneered and developed a High Throughput Physical Vapour Deposition facility (HT-PVD) that can deposit large numbers of films of different composition in one experimental run. This facility is operated under UHV conditions and utilises a variety of sources for multi-element (up to 6) deposition onto unique substrate arrays (targets). Patented technology ensures that the deposition of all elements occurs simultaneously and that the composition profile can be carefully varied across the substrate in a controlled manner. A feature of this technique is that proper mixing of the elements is achieved during synthesis, whereas alternative methods rely upon sequential, single element deposition followed by a heating step to produce alloy homogeneity.
The composition and structure of a particular point on the target can be confirmed in-situ using a variety of analytical techniques so that Ilika can characterise and map the nature of the materials generated. (see page 14). This is important when attempting to understand the thermal, optical, electrical, electrochemical, phase change or gas absorption behaviours of the samples as a function of composition.
The types of material that can be deposited using this facility include:
- Mixed alloys
- Mixed and doped oxides
- Mixed and doped hydrides
- Mixed and doped Nitrides
- Chalcogenides
Chemical Vapour Deposition
Ilika has developed a high throughput Chemical Vapour Deposition (HT-CVD) facility that addresses many design considerations including the need to be able to use; multiple heated precursor and reactor gases, a wide range of different substrates (for e.g. various glass and steel substrates) and the ability to be able to heat these substrates to very high temperatures in a controlled manner.
Specially designed features allow the controlled and sealed depositions of individual homogenous films thereby minimising any potential contamination problems. The construction and use of specially fabricated sample arrays enables the rapid sequential deposition of many discrete films in one batch.
Characterisation and Screening Techniques
HT synthesis techniques create large numbers of samples to be analysed and it is vital that the required screening and characterisation steps are also undertaken using a fast HT approach. This involves the design and use of unique sample arrays that allow the many different compositions synthesised to be analysed in a rapid manner for a specific required behaviour. As the screening and characterisation techniques are often automated, Ilika has developed a range of customised software for the control of these procedures as well as for the treatment of the large datasets generated.
Inorganic Analytical Techniques
High Throughput Characterisation and Screening is possible because of the development of unique substrate arrays which allow all material compositions to be screened for the required properties. With the Microhotplate MEMS array , the samples can be quickly heated to very high temperatures and various parameters then monitored - for example ; optical changes, conductivity changes, phase changes and gas absorption / desorption behaviours.
With the alternative E-chem sample array, the films have an electrical contact that allows them to be electrochemically screened off line.
Ilika has adopted the following well established characterisation techniques for high throughput purposes, by using highly sophisticated robotics and automation:
| Composition / structure: |
SEM, EDS, XRD, AFM, TEM, Raman |
| Conductivity: |
4-point probe, Van de Pauw |
| Optical: |
Ellipsometer |
| Thermal: |
IR Thermal Camera |
| Thickness: |
Profilometer, AFM |
| Phase Change: |
IR Thermal Camera, Differential Scanning Calorimetry |
| Electrochemistry: |
CV,Potential Step, Rotating Disc Studies |
Informatics
Ilika Technologies has developed a range of specialised, in-house software that controls the instrumentation associated with our workflows. Ilika software also enables the rapid, simultaneous collection of large datasets which are then processed, analysed and presented so that meaningful conclusions about material properties can be drawn. This capability is central to the success of High Throughput Experimentation and means that the results collected and the conclusions drawn can also be effectively used for the submission of patents to protect materials discovered.
In designing select High throughput workflows for customers, Ilika can customise the software design to meet the specific needs of our clients. |
